Oil boosted by Ukraine's crisis, shakes off inventory build

Crude traded near three week highs on Wednesday, with both Brent and U.S. crude supported by a draw on stocks in the United States and the deteriorating situation in Ukraine.

U.S. crude stocks rose overall last week but fell by 592,000 barrels at the storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point of the U.S. oil futures contract, data from the Energy Information Administration showed. Gasoline and distillate inventories fell as refineries cut output.

Source: Denver International Airport

Brent crude for June delivery was up about $1 above $110 a barrel, after closing up 83 cents. The June contract expires on Thursday. U.S. oil settled up 67 cents at $102.37 a barrel, its highest since late April, after finishing $1.11 higher in the previous session.

The EIA data also showed domestic crude oil production hit 8.43 million barrels per day (bpd) last week, the highest level since October 1986.Meanwhile, crude oil inventories in the Gulf Coast region hit a record high of 215.7 million barrels after they rose 2.3 million barrels in the week to May 9.

Kiev's interim leaders proposed a plan to allow regions a greater say in government one day after the deadliest attack on Ukraine's security forces yet in which seven soldiers died near the city of Kramatorsk.